1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a connector. The connector has rear holders which are first molded together with a housing in a plurality of molds. Then, the rear holders are temporarily retained in the housing as the molds are removed and regularly retained therein after connecting terminals are inserted. And the present invention relates to a method of manufacturing thereof.
2. Related Art
Heretofore, there exist various connectors with rear holders and methods of manufacturing such connectors with rear holders known to the art as disclosed in JP-A-8-250183, for example.
In a connector 51 with related rear holders shown in FIGS. 16 to 18, rear holders 70a and 70b that are temporarily and regularly retained in such a manner as to be laid across opposite side portions of a housing 52 are held in the temporarily retaining positions. The housing has a plurality of terminal housing chambers 53. Then connecting terminals 32 are inserted from the rear end of the housing 52 and respectively retained by housing lances 81 in the terminal housing chambers 53. Further, the rear holders 70a and 70b are retained in the regularly retaining positions, so that the connecting terminals 32 are doubly retained therein.
More specifically, stooping guide holes 72 are provided in the respective side pieces of the rear holder 70a. Secondary retaining projections 73 for secondarily retaining each connecting terminal 32 are provided in the front end portion of the undersurface of the rear holder 70a. Openings 53a for inserting the secondary retaining projection 73 obliquely above from the temporarily retaining position to the regularly retaining position is provided in the upper central portion of each terminal housing chamber 53. On opposite sides 53b of the housing 52, there are also provided a stooping guide rail 54 having a tapered surface engaged with the guide hole 72, and a regularly retaining projection 55 that is obliquely positioned in front of each guide rail 54.
As opposite sides 53b, where the guide rails 54 and the regularly retaining projections 55 are projected, are set narrower than the whole width of the opposite sides 52a of the front portion, jutties 56 are set to opposite sides 53b in parallel to and below the guide rails 54 and the regularly retaining projections 55 whereby to make opposite sides 53b equal in width to opposite sides 52a. Because the lower rear holder 70b in the drawings is substantially equal in structure to the rear holder 70a, the description thereof will be omitted.
In the connector 51 with the related rear holders, the tapered surface provided on the surface of each guide rail 54 causes the side pieces 71 are bent to opposite directions when the rear holder 70a on one side is forced in from above the rear end portion of the housing 52. Thus the guide holes 72 are mated with the guide rails 54, so that the rear holder 70a is held in the temporarily retaining position of the housing 52. Moreover, the rear holder 70b is also held in the temporarily retaining position of the housing 52.
When the connecting terminal 32 is subsequently inserted from behind the terminal housing chamber 53, it is primarily retained by the housing lance 81. When the rear holder 70a and the rear holder 70b are pressed forward, the guide holes 72 are guided by the guide rail 54s and the front ends of the side pieces 71 climb over the regularly retaining projections 55. Then the front end portions of the guide holes 72 is retained by the regularly retaining projections 55 and the secondary retaining projections 73 are caused to enter the terminal housing chambers 53 from the openings 53a. 
In a case where the housing 52 and the rear holders 70a and 70b are separately formed before being gathered at one place for the assembly of them, however, it becomes necessary carrying them to fabrication places and performing not only assembly but also inspection steps in addition to individually controlling such parts as housings 52 and rear holders 70a and 70b. 
In order to improve this situation, it has also be proposed to provide a connector with rear holders through the steps of temporarily retaining and incorporating the rear holders 70a and 70b in the housing 52 simultaneously with the use of a mold shown in FIG. 19, and then taking the rear holders out of the mold.
A temporarily retaining mold 90 shown in FIG. 19 is formed with a front fixed mold (not shown), a first movable mold 92 that is moved vertically, a pair of second movable molds 93 and 93 that are moved laterally, and a pair of third movable molds 94 and 94 that are moved longitudinally.
The central housing 52 in FIG. 19 is molded inside the first and second movable molds 92 and 93. The rear holders 70a and 70b are molded outside the first movable mold 92, inside the second movable mold 93 and inside the third movable mold 94.
In other words, the housing 52 and the rear holders 70a and 70b are formed in such a condition that the fixed and the movable molds have been joined together and then the first movable mold 92 is pulled up and subsequently the second movable molds 93 and 93 are separated laterally. Consequently, a space is produced between the rear holders 70a and 70b and the housing 52, and the third movable molds 94 and 94 are moved in the direction of the housing. Then the guide holes 72 of the rear holders 70a and 70b are retained by the guide rails 54 of the housing 52, and the rear holders 70a and 70b are temporarily retained by the housing 52. Further, the third movable molds 94 are separated from the housing 52, whereby the housing 52 in which the rear holders 70a and 70b have been retained temporarily is taken out of the temporarily retaining mold 90.
In the connector 51 with the related rear holders, high dimensional precision is required during the molding process to have the slot-like guide holes 72 respectively retained by the guide rails 54 and the regularly retaining projections 55 so as to have the rear holders 70a and 70b temporarily and regularly retained in the housing 52. Therefore, the retaining operation above is problematical as it has resulted in not only lowering productivity but also increasing the production cost.
Another problem is that the molding structure becomes complicated because it is necessary for the first movable mold 92 of the temporarily retaining mold 90 to move vertically, for the second movable molds 93 to move laterally and moreover for the third movable molds 94 to move longitudinally.
An object of the present invention made in view of the foregoing problems is to provide an inexpensive connector with rear holders requiring no high dimensional precision in particular for the rear holders to be molded during molding operation for which employable movable molds need less moving.
The foregoing problems can be solved by a connector with rear holders according to the invention as described in the following items 1) to 3):
1) A connector comprising:
a housing;
a plurality of terminal housing chambers for respectively housing connecting terminals provided at the housing;
a rear holder adapted to be retained at a temporarily retaining position of the housing which the connecting terminals are respectively housed in the plurality of terminal housing chambers and a regularly retaining position of the housing which the connecting terminals are respectively retained in the plurality of terminal housing chambers;
a retaining hole provided at inside the rear holder;
a retaining pawl having a tilting face provided at inside the rear holder;
a temporarily retaining projection having a tapered surface engaged with the retaining hole provided at the housing;
a tapered retaining step engaged with the retaining pawl provided at the housing; and
a contact face tilted forwardly downwardly for guiding the rear holder provided at the housing,
wherein the rear holder is pivoted by contacting the temporarily retaining projection and the retaining step before the rear holder is retained in the temporarily retaining position.
2) A method of manufacturing a connector including a housing having a plurality of terminal housing chambers, and a rear holder adapted to be retained at a temporarily retaining position of the housing which connecting terminals are respectively housed in the plurality of terminal housing chambers and a regularly retaining position of the housing which the connecting terminals are respectively retained in the plurality of terminal housing chambers, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a temporarily retaining mold for molding and temporarily retaining the housing and the rear holder, the temporarily retaining mold including a fixed mold and a plurality of movable mold movable with respect to the fixed mold;
molding the housing and the rear holder in the temporarily retaining mold;
moving at least one the plurality of movable mold so that the rear holder are rotated with respect to the housing and retained at the temporarily retaining position.
3) a method of manufacturing a connector including a housing having a plurality of terminal housing chambers,. and a rear holder adapted to be retained at a temporarily retaining position of the housing which connecting terminals are respectively housed in the plurality of terminal housing chambers and a regularly retaining position of the housing which the connecting terminals are respectively retained in the plurality of terminal housing chambers, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a temporarily retaining mold for molding and temporarily retaining the housing and the rear holder, the temporarily retaining mold including a fixed mold, a first movable mold for molding an outer shell of the housing and an inner shell of the rear holder, a second movable mold for movably supporting the first movable mold in an axial direction, a third movable mold for molding an outer shell of the rear holder, and a forth movable mold for molding and retaining a central portion of the housing;
molding the housing and the rear holder in the temporarily retaining mold;
separating the second movable mold from the fixed mold;
moving the first movable mold with respect to the second movable mold and the housing so that the fourth movable mold partially retains the housing;
moving the third movable mold to a space which produced inside the third movable mold so that the rear holder are rotated with respect to the housing and retained at the temporarily retaining position.
In the connector with the rear holders thus arranged as described above, one of the rear holders includes the retaining hole and the retaining pawl having the stooping face inside the side piece of the rear holder; the temporarily retaining projection engaged with the retaining hole and having the tapered surface over its whole surface is provided on the side of the rear end portion of the housing, and the tapered retaining step engaged with the retaining pawl is provided in the vicinity of the temporarily retaining projection; the stooping contact face for guiding the rear holder is provided on the surface of the rear end portion of the housing; and the rear holders both are pivoted by respectively contacting the temporarily retaining projections and the retaining steps before being temporarily retained.
Therefore, the rear holders are temporarily retained in the housing while being pivoted when the retaining holes and the retaining pawls of the rear holders are brought into contact with the respective temporarily retaining projections and the retaining steps of the housing and when the undersurfaces of the rear holders are brought into contact with the contact faces. In other words, as the retaining step and the contact face are pivoted on a relatively long slope, no high dimensional precision is essential, which makes it possible to not only improve productivity but also obtain an inexpensive connector with rear holders.
In the method of producing a connector with rear holders thus arranged as described above, the temporarily retaining mold for molding and temporarily retaining the housing and the rear holders includes the fixed mold and the plurality of movable molds which are movable with respect to the fixed mold; and after the housing and the rear holders are molded in the molds, the rear holders are pivoted and temporarily retained when at least one of the movable molds or part of the mold is subjected to parallel movement.
Therefore, as the rear holders are pivoted and temporarily retained only when part of the movable mold is moved, a relatively simple structure and a driving method can be adopted, which makes it possible to not only improve productivity but also obtain an inexpensive connector with rear holders.
In the method of producing a connector with rear holders thus arranged as described above, the temporarily retaining mold for molding and temporarily retaining the housing and the rear holders includes the fixed mold, the first movable mold for forming the outer shell of the housing and the inner shells of the rear holders, the second movable molds for movably supporting the first movable mold in the axial direction of the housing, the third movable molds for forming the outer shells of the rear holders, and the fourth movable mold for forming and holding the central portion of the housing; and after the housing and the rear holders are molded in the mold, the second movable molds are estranged from the fixed mold and the first movable mold is moved back up to a position where the first movable mold holds the rear end portion of the housing, and the third movable molds are moved into the space produced inside the third movable molds, whereby the retaining holes of the rear holders are mated with the respective temporarily retaining projections; the rear holders are pivoted stoopingly on the temporarily retaining projections; the retaining pawls are mated with the retaining steps; and simultaneously the undersurfaces of the respective rear holders are brought into contact with the contact faces, so that the rear holders are temporarily retained in the housing.
Therefore, as the first, second and fourth movable molds can be moved laterally only by vertically moving the third movable molds, a relatively simple structure and a driving method can be adopted, which makes it possible to not only improve productivity but also obtain an inexpensive connector with rear holders.